Our team, like many small businesses these days, lives and works all over the country thanks to the ease of telecommuting these days, but as we grow we’ve run into a few hiccups sharing information across the airwaves. There are tons of popular cloud storage services these days such as Dropbox and Google Drive, but what happens when you start to need something with a little more power and security behind it? Thanks to WD, a Western Digital company, we’ve had the opportunity to transfer all of our precious information into our own private and secure cloud storage with the MyCloud EX2.
We’ve gathered our top 5 reasons your business needs a WD MyCloud EX2 below along with all of the tech specs so read on to learn more about the benefits of having your own private cloud storage.
1. You can access your data from anywhere.
With employees on both coasts, its important for all of us to be able to access our data from anywhere at anytime. The WD My Cloud EX2 allows our team to save and manage files from anywhere, on a variety of different devices from desktop to tablets to phones, and on both iOS® and Android™ devices. We can create an unlimited number of users (instead of having to pay for each like some business apps) and allow them access to specific data from the easy to use desktop app.
2. The WD My Cloud apps are easy to use and free!
The mobile app makes file sharing and collaborating simple, allowing users to easily email files, share files as a link, and print and open files with third party apps. It also integrates major public cloud services so that business owners can easily transfer files from their Dropbox™, SkyDrive® and Google Drive™ public cloud accounts. Our team is on the go most of the time so being able to easily and efficiently access our information from phones and tablets is a huge selling point for us.
3. All of your data is secure on your own personal server.
Dropbox and Google Drive can be awesome but do you know where you data actually is? And can you be sure that its secure? The WD MyCloud includes several data management and security features that allow customers to select their preferred methods for managing and protecting their digital files. Drive management options include RAID 0, RAID 1; JBOD and spanning modes, while data protection options include RAID 1, USB, cloud or LAN/WAN backup. The My Cloud EX2 comes preconfigured in RAID 1 mode to protect data right from the start and is easily configurable into other data protection modes.
4. No monthly costs and expandable space.
Many cloud storage services come with a monthly fee which may seem reasonable, but can add up over time. With the MyCloud EX2 you pay one flat cost up front to own your cloud, instead of renting space on a monthly basis. There are also a few different options for the amount of storage space included, so you can choose the best option for your business, but you can always add more later (up to 8TB) with their expandable storage space. We have 4 TB in our private cloud and it is more than enough for our team at the moment, but its nice to know it will be able to grow with us.
MAP is $199.99 USD for the diskless My Cloud EX2, $369.99 USD for 4 TB, $469.99 USD for 6 TB and $569.99 USD for 8 TB.
5. Advanced features.
As the tech guru of our team, the parts of the My Cloud EX2 that make me most excited are the advanced features. While we don’t use many of them at the moment, I know they will become extremely useful as we grow both our business and our online presence. My Cloud EX2 includes advanced data serving options including an integrated file server, FTP server, backup server and a P2P download server. The built in HTTP download server allows you to download files directly from the web to the My Cloud EX2. If you’re a business owner who doesn’t know what any of that is, don’t stress. Just know you’re going to make your tech person extremely happy someday when you hire them and tell them you have your own cloud.
Full Specifications
WD My Cloud EX2 Specifications include:
Capacity
• MAP is $199.99 USD for the diskless My Cloud EX2, $369.99 USD for 4 TB, $469.99 USD for 6 TB and $569.99 USD for 8 TB.
Compatibility
• Windows 8.1 or earlier, Windows 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP (32 bit) SP 3 operating systems
• Mac OS X Mavericks, Mountain Lion, Lion or Snow Leopard operating systems
• DLNA/UPnP devices for streaming
• Router with Internet connection
Questions about the My Cloud EX2? Feel free to leave them in the comments! I’d love to chat more about any of the features above. And make sure to check out the WD’s website to learn more cool things that the My Cloud EX2 can do like streaming media to connected devices and automatically backing up your desktop data.
This post is sponsored by Western Digital.